1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a gaming machine and a gaming information authentication loading device configured to authenticate and load gaming information stored in a portable storage medium, and a gaming information loading device configured to load the gaming information stored in the portable storage medium.
2. Description of the Related Art
There have been conventionally various gaming machines such as a video gaming machine, a slot machine, a pachi-slot machine and a pachinko gaming machine. Recently, a portable storage medium such as a compact flash memory card (a registered trade name of “CF card”) is employed to feed a gaming program and gaming information into each of these gaming machines. The gaming program is used to control a gaming procedure, a gaming image display, a gaming action and the like to be executed in the gaming machine. The gaming information is used in a game to be played in the gaming machine.
In a case where the portable storage medium is employed in the gaming machine, the portable storage medium stores the gaming information therein and then is attached to the gaming machine to feed the gaming information into the gaming machine. In this configuration, a malicious third party can carry out a fraud act such as making a copy or a falsification of the stored gaming information because the portable storage medium is not incorporated into the gaming machine and is easily detached from the gaming machine. Therefore, it is very important to prevent the malicious third party from carrying out the fraud act when the gaming information is fed into the gaming machine by means of the portable storage medium.
Conventional prevention methods for the fraud act are disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-open Publications No. 2001-344096, No. 2002-341957 and No. H08-241194.
In the first reference, when a storage medium is attached to a gaming machine, the gaming machine stores unique identification information for the gaming machine in the storage medium, and the storage medium stores unique identification information for the storage medium in the gaming machine. If the unique identification information for the gaming machine matches the unique identification information for the storage medium, software stored in the storage medium is executed.
In the second reference, when a removal unit is attached to a computer main body, a user code stored in the removal unit is compared with a unit code stored in the computer main body. If the user code matches the unit code, the computer main body boots up a system.
In the third reference, a security code stored in a storage means (storage medium) is compared with a security code stored in a gaming machine. If both security codes match each other, the gaming machine reads a gaming program stored in the storage means. This security check is repeatedly conducted during a gaming procedure.
However, these prevention methods for the fraud act have the problem that the stored gaming information is not authenticated. More specifically, none of these prevention methods certifies that a falsification of the stored gaming information is not made.
The prevention method disclosed in the first reference can prevent a malicious third party from making a copy of the stored gaming information and using it on the gaming machine by means of another storage medium, however, can not prevent the malicious third party from making a falsification of the stored gaming information. The prevention method disclosed in the second reference can authenticate the removal unit, however can not prevent a malicious third party from making a falsification of the stored gaming information because data stored in the removal unit are not authenticated. The prevention method disclosed in the third reference can prevent a malicious third party from replacing the gaming program stored in one storage medium by a fraudulent gaming program stored in another storage medium and using it on the gaming machine after the security check is started, however, can not prevent the malicious third party from making a falsification of the gaming program stored in the one storage medium.